How Technology Is Changing Online Gaming
Online gaming has come a long way in the past few years.
An online game like Runescape feels like it was released a lifetime ago, and what we have now is so much more advanced it almost feels unbelievable.
This isn’t going to be a Divine Fortune review but rather a dive into how technology has changed and is changing gaming as we know it.
5G
The most significant improvement to online gaming has to be the introduction of 5G. To play online, obviously, you need an internet connection, and nothing kills an online gaming session quicker than not being able to connect or lagging. 5G is here to change that. The high-speed internet connection not only allows more people to connect at one point, but it transfers data at speeds we have never seen before. This allows for a lot of exciting stuff in the gaming world.
If internet connections are faster and can handle more people, multiplayer games can be bigger and give you a larger in-game event and experience. As said, the quicker the internet, the more data can be transferred in a shorter period.
Cloud Gaming
5G has helped improve one of the most exciting gaming advances of the past few years, cloud gaming. Like how Netflix works, cloud gaming allows you to stream games to your selected device and play them wherever you are. You don’t have to buy the game or download it; simply stream it like you would with a TV show or movie. Additionally, these aren’t trimmed-down versions of the game; it is the same game you would get if you bought it in the traditional way.
Cloud gaming will allow you to play any game available on any device that can connect to the internet; your smartphone, laptop, console, or PC. There are no console or PC exclusives.
Additionally, updating games will become easier as you don’t even have to download and install and update; you just play the updated version when you log in. Currently, Microsoft and Xbox offer a cloud gaming subscription, with other brands soon to follow.
AI for Game Development
AI is helping to transform game development. Large games such as No Man’s Sky utilized procedural generation, where new worlds and planets were constantly created by the computer and weren’t coded in by the developers.
This is a form of AI creating the game, and it is a technology that is being built on. Developers want to use it to create massive parts of a game that would take humans months to code themselves.
AI is also being used to create levels after watching and learning a particular game and understanding how it is being played. Developers are doing this right now, with AI creating entire levels instead of just backdrops and miscellaneous pieces of an environment.
Mobile Gaming
Mobile gaming is an area that has seen some of the most significant advancements. Considering smartphone technology has come such a long way in the past few years, it is no surprise that gaming has followed.
We are now in a world where you can play fully-fledged versions of AAA gaming titles such as Fortnite and Call of Duty. Not watered down mobile versions with a fraction of the features, but versions with everything you could need or want. As mentioned already, smartphones will quickly become gaming hubs considering you will be able to play all of your favorite games using cloud gaming services.
Virtual Reality
Virtual reality is another sector that has seen a remarkable expansion in a short period. Devices such as the Oculus Rift have turned virtual reality technology we thought was only possible in movies into tech we can buy and use right now.
Combine this with the advancements we see in online games, and we are quickly heading towards a day where we will be able to play games such as Call of Duty Warzone and Apex Legends in VR. While VR multiplayer games are available, they are still in their basic stages, and the controls and gameplay are still a bit clunky. However, there are already VR versions of popular games, such as a VR Counter-Strike.
Improving Security
On the backend of gaming design, security is still a hot topic. Information being stolen, accounts being hacked, game files being hacked and leaked are all issues that developers face and have to deal with on a regular basis. Security is now an area that is becoming more important, and AI is leading the charge. AI is being used in many industries for cyber security due to its ability to process tons of information and spot possible threats quicker than any human could.
AI will keep companies more secure and protect their data and their game. As mentioned, privacy has become vital in this day and age, yet we still hear of games and websites being hacked and millions of people’s information stolen. AI aims to make this a thing of the past and protect the game at its core, the company that has developed the game, and the people who choose to play it.
Preventing Hacking
Hacking has become the bane of so many gamers’ existence. The biggest battle royale in the world, Warzone, is riddled with hackers that are ruining games almost every second of the day.
This isn’t a problem just within Warzone either; many online games have suffered from cheaters and hackers. However, more and more tech is being developed to spot hackers immediately and permanently ban them. The biggest argument has always been that banning an account isn’t enough, as the cheater can just make a new one and log back in. Perma-bans, IP bans, and hardware bans are needed, and this is where the tech is heading to.
Warzone’s new anti-cheat system, Ricochet, will be tested when the new Warzone map is released. It has been touted as the best anti-cheat out there, and we will see if it can be used as a blueprint for the future.
